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May 21, 2004 -- AUBURN HILLS - With all the talk about the Knicks courting Rasheed Wallace, there's another Piston big man who fits what Isiah Thomas is looking for - 7-foot restricted free agent Mehmet Okur.
While Detroit GM Joe Dumars has been emphatic about re-signing Wallace, Okur's status is unclear. As with Wallace, Thomas is expected to take a run at Okur, it has been learned.

If Wallace does re-sign with the Pistons, Okur could be the odd-man out and the Knicks have their $5 million mid-level exception to play with. Thomas has said he will be very active with his mid-level exception.

Knicks coach Lenny Wilkens said the club would look for an athletic power forward. Okur doesn't meet that description, as he's slow, but he has brawn and size and can block shots, unlike Nazr Mohammed. Plus, this free-agent class is weak and Thomas can eliminate all the talk that he doesn't like European talent if he signed Okur.

Okur is restricted, meaning the Pistons could match any offer for him. But because Okur has played only two years, the Pistons can't match an offer over $5 million from an under-the-cap club. Hence, they can match the Knicks' offer.

The capped-out Knicks also can only offer Wallace their mid-level at a maximum six years, bringing the total to $37.5 million. Thomas could be creative and try to lure Wallace for two years at the mid-level ($5.0M, $5.5M) then re-sign him to a 75-percent raise, according to CBA rules. That would make his salary in the third year $9.62M.

It's clear Pistons coach Larry Brown doesn't always know what he has with Okur, a native of Turkey who is in his second NBA season. Speculation that Okur was all but history as a Piston surfaced in Detroit after the Game 5 three-overtime classic last Friday.

Despite all the foul-outs, including Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace and Tayshaun Prince, Okur did not play in any of the three OTs, as Brown went with a small-ball lineup.

However, Brown learned from his mistake. In Game 6, with the Pistons trying to rally from a 13-2 hole, Okur was put into the game at small forward for the erratic-shooting Prince and Detroit thrived. Okur combined with the Wallaces for a lethal and big frontcourt that made it tough for the Nets to get to the rim in the halfcourt.

It would be a good pickup for the knicks. Thomas has never been too keen on players from europe. Still even, he might have to put that aside and sign Okur, it can't be denied that he would add size up front + he has a nice shot. Now more than ever, it doesn't look like Wallace will leave the Pistons, we need to have some backup plans this summer. I have a feeling the Knicks and Miami might swap some players.

The Pistons' plans for Okur are muddled, as his playing time has suffered. The Knicks can offer Okur the mid-level exception, a six-year deal starting at $5 million. If they do, and the Pistons re-sign Rasheed Wallace, it's not likely Detroit will match.

Okur is not Isiah Thomas' first choice for the $5M mid-level exception, but he's in the mix. With Allan Houston's knee a concern, the Knicks would love to add restricted free agent combo guard Jamal Crawford, particularly with the growing sense the Bulls won't match a mid-level offer. However, Thomas could do a sign-and-trade with the Bulls, then use the mid-level on a big man.

Okur can play all three frontcourt positions, but Larry Brown doesn't like him enough to pull struggling small forward Tayshaun Prince from the starting lineup. And in a telling remark last Friday, Joe Dumars, in talking about the Pistons' future, excluded Okur's name.

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